Heater



Feb. 4; 1930. J. s. FORBES 1,745,752

HEATER Filed April 12, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet l //V VE N TOR Joimfifirbes ATTORNEYS Feb. 4, 1930. 1 s, FORBES 1,745,752

HEATER Filed April 12, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 //V VE N TOR Patented Feb. 4, 1930 5 PATENT OFFICE \JOHN' S. FORBES, or OVERBROoK, PENNSYLVANIA HEATER Application filed April 12,

A principal object of the invention is to provide a heater particularly adapted for 1n- "stallation in bathrooms, physicians offices "and the like for the purpose of heating the 5same andembodying a movable radiative" shelf-like incmberor plate normally occupying a substantiallyverticalposition butwhich may be raised therefromto a substantially horizontal position to thereby provide a coni venient support upon which may be disposed and heated or dried if desired, articles such-as towels, food and medicine containers andthe k A further objectof the invention is to pro- 5 vid'ea heater of the general character of that 'to which reference has been made which 1s f compact, simple in design and construction a-ndthus not liable to get outof order or become damaged under condit ons of use; which can'b e manufactured at a relatively low cost and which, particularly when the parts exposed to view are constructed of enameled or otherwise suitably and attractively finished metal, is of ornamental appearance and thus suitbale fOI'dIlStfillttlOIl in proximity to or association with bathroom fixtures, surgicalappliances-and the like of the modern stand- '*;ar'ds of beauty and finish. I g 1 The invention further includes other ob-' Eli iects and novel features of design,-construc-- tion and arrangement hereinafter morepar- *ticularly mentioned or which will be ap parentf-rom the followingdescription of certain forms of the invention illustrated in the 535 accompanying drawings in which Fig. 1 is a perspective view of one of said forms-with V theplate occupyingits lowered or normal position; Fig. 2 is a similar view with the plate raised to substantially horizontal position,

inventionjembodying a different form of heat- I Fig; "is-a perspective view'of the form of the Jail? msinvention shownin Fig. 6 but w th th p ate support.

1928. Serial No. 269,320.

removed and showing the parts in normal position; Fig. 8 is a similar view showing the same parts in the position which theyoccupy when the plate is raised; and Fig. 9 is a perspective partially fragmentary view showing 1 the casing in which the heating unit is housed under normal conditions. The same numerals are employed to designate corresponding parts in the several figures.

Referring now more particularly to the form of the invention shown in Figs. 1 to 4 in'clusive,the same comprises a plate-like support 1 adapted to be secured in substantially vertical position to a wall or the like; for this purpose the support may be provided with perforated lugs 2 for the reception of screws. Preferably, and as best shown in Figs. 3 and 4, this support may comprise rearwardly extending marginal flanges 1 adapted to abut the wall and thus maintain the central or major portion of the support spaced therefrom so as to provide an air space 3 between it and the wall. I

The heating unit or source of heat, generally designated at 5, and hereinafter more fully described, is disposed in a box-like casing 6 located in front of and carried by the This casing is preferably formed of sheet metal and comprises a front wall 7, rear wall 8, bottom wall 9 and end walls 10 as well as a pair of laterally spaced, rearward'ly extending supporting webs 11, the ends of which may be turned transversely and secured in any suitable way to the face of the support. For supporting. the heating unit within the casing a plate 12 may be suitably secured therein in front of and spaced from the wall 8 and the heating unit attached thereto in any convenient way. This unit may be of any suitable form and construction as, for example, a plurality of coils of suitable resistance wire respectively mounted upon vertically spaced cylindrical insulators extending horizontally in the casing, currentbeing supplied to the heating unit through the me dium of wires, generally designated as W, extending rearwardly through the rear wall of the casing and through a cylindrical conduit 13 which may be struck up from the support 1 so as to, form an integral part thereof as shown. The wires may then be carried upwardly in the air space 3 and brought out forwardly through the support for connection to amultipoint switch 16 located on the support preferably near the upper end thereof and by means of which the flow of current through the heating unit can be controlled so as to vary the degree of heat produced thereby; from the switch other wires extend to the source of current supply. The particular method-and connections employed for controlling the temperature of the heating unit through the medium of the switch 16 or otherwise form no part of the present invention and may therefore be of any form suitable for the purpose, as will be readily understood by those familiar with the art.

, Desirably the front wall 7 of the casing 6, is made somewhat shorter than the rear wall 8 andthe latter abovethe heating unit. is bent angularly forward so asto corre spondingly direct theheated and. rising air,

while to permit the ingress of air to the easing so it can pass over the heating unit, the

rear wall of the casing adjacent its lower extremity may be cut away as at 18; thus, 7 air entering at this point can pass upwardly by convection over the heating unit and thence out of the casing through its upper andopen end. v

For normally substantially concealing the casing in which the heating unit is disposed, as well as for forming a shelf-like structure when disposed. in substantially horizontal position, I provide a hinged element or plate ahd which is generally designated as 20. This element, which is preferably constructed as an integral unit by forming it up from a single sheet of metal or other material through which heatmayibeconveyed fairly rapidly from one side to the other, comprises a substantially rectangularcentral portion portion in any suitable wayso torotate about a horizontal axis, for example by means .of a pivot rod 23 extending transversely;

throughthe end-walls 10 of the casingv 6 and projecting laterally therefrom through openings 24 in the flange of the 'pl,ate,'but,-

if desired, any other suitable means may be utilized for effecting the requisite hinged connect-ion and support for theplate. .Thus,

when the plate is lowered to substantially vertical or normal position shown in Figs. 1, and 3 tcsubstant1al'ly covers and conceals 1 the casingv 6 but when swung upwardly" about *tot e position s own n gs-*2 andi' e' plate forms a substantially horizontally exits hinge connectionsrtherewith substantially tending shelfupon which any desired articles may; be disposed.

, Means 'are providedior main aining the plate in raised or substantially horizontal position, said means preferably comprising a pair of arms 35 respectively pivoted or hinged to lugs 36 on the front face of the support 1 and in turn pivoted as at 37 to the free ends of a generally U-shaped member 38 which is pivoted to the plate on pivots 39 so as to swing vertically; Thus, when the plate is lowered, the arms 35 and member 38 fold up or buckle about pivots 37 to assume the position shown in Fig. 3 but when the plate is raised the arms and member are brought into substantial parallelism and thus form a strut adapted to hold the plate in elevated position as in Fig. 4. To prevent pivots 37 frompassing over center, the arms are each provided with a lug 40 wh ch engages member 38 when the parts are In extended position and prevents them from buckling downwardlyJ As hitherto stated the cool air enters the casing 6 near the bottom theerof and moves upwardly therein by convection until it finally escapes from the upper end of the casing, after being'heated. in its passage over the heating unit, and thence passes into the plate. To facilitate the escape of this heated air from the interior of the plate when the latter is in lowered or substantially vertical position, that portion ofthe marginal flangr: of the plate which underthese conditions is uppermost is preferably provided with a series ofholes 45 through which the heated air can readily escape and pass into theroom. However, when the plate is. raised to substantially horizontal position these holes or openings are then disposed adjacent the back of the casing 6 and more ore-less covered thereby so that very li tle heated air can escape through them although it can still es-- cape from the top of the casing. Therefore,

in order to deflect this air against the under side of the central part of the plate so it will exercise a heating effect thereon, I preferably provide a movable deflector 42 in they form of a sheet of metal of somewhat smaller dimensions than the central portion of the 7 plate so it will readily seat inside of the latterand hinge th ame'. along 0 .16 e ge to the front wall of the casing reat-{t3 so the deflector is'free to swing upwardly and downwardly in correspondence withthe: movements of theplate, the deflector being desirably of sufiicient length to: overhang at its free end the cen al p r of the Uehaped member 38 so; as toiriide on the same. Thus,

w e the plat is owere th fdefie ha g r substantially vertically'between the front a 1 wall of the casing and the central portion 7 f V deflec through its ontact withfth n emof the platebut as the latter-is raisedithe her 38, is caused to follow the p te upwa d v and ult mately assume a .sligl thi -upwei dly:

and, f r ardly i lin d posi ion a be t hown mg SQ th a start at chamber;

- is formed between the under face of the "plateand the deflector into which the heated air using fromthe casing 6 is directed by -theforwardly inclined upper portion of the :rear wall8 of the casing so that it can exeruse its maximum heating efiect on the plate.

g It will'thus be apparent that the heater may be readily employed whenv the plate is in lowered position for heating the room in I -.which it is disposed, and that under these conditions thecool air entering the casing T 6*through the opening 18 is free to rise therein and be progressively heated as it passes over the heatingunit from which point it passes out of the easing into the interior of the 16which is ordinarily sodesigned as to afford at least three degrees of heat regulation for theheating unit. When it is desired to utilize the plate as a shelf, it is merely necessary to lift the same to substantially horizontal position as shown in Fig. 4 upon the attainment of which the arms and member 38 are automatically brought to and locked in bedisposed thereon, while at the sametime extended position and thus operate to hold the plate raised until they are manually slightly buckled upwardly about pivots 37 preparatory to again lowering the plate. It *will be further apparent thatwhen the plate is raised the heated air fro-m the casing is directed in major portion against the under surface of the plate so as to heat the latter, and, in turn, to heat or dry any article which may the. heated plate exercises a considerable heating effect upon the surrounding atmosphere by radiatiomwhile as the control of the temperature of the heating unit is entirely independent of the position of the plate current may besupplied to the unit when and as de- I sired irrespective of the adjusted position of the plate.v j I V Inthe form of the inventionshown in Fig.

'1 5 another ,type of heating unit is utilized,

' current is supplied by a cord or wire This element is mounted in a casing 52 open at the front and preferably closed on all foursides and at theback'and provided with perforated flu'gs 5 3 to enable the heaterto be conveniently secured to a wall or other supporting surface.

I As in the form of the invention'heretofore described, theheating unit is preferably r mountedwithin the. casing on a plate 54 offset I from the back wall of the casing and connectedto the latter by flanges or webs 56 so as r to provide an air space between the plate and the back wall of the casing, the cord W7 1' being led through this space and thence downwardly out of the casing for connection to the source of'currentsupply. The casing maybe provided witha pair of laterally spaced upwardly projecting ears 57 through WlllCllfilld the flange of the plate are extend,

ed pivots 58 upon which the plate can turn in a manner similar to that heretofore described. The heating unit is mounted within the casing in a substantially vertical position so that the heat radiated therefrom is projected outwardly and forwardly, desirably against reflecting plates 59 and 59 respectively extended between the pairs of arms 85 and the arms of member 38 and secured to and movable therewith. .Thus when the arms and member are in extended position as shown'in Fig. 5,'the two plates together form a reflecting surface against which the rays of heat from the heating unit are projected and by which the said rays are directed in a generally upward direction against the under side side of the superjacent plate as indicatedby the broken lines in the said figure, thereby heating the plate when it is in raised position. The positions assumed by the plate and strut forming members when the plate is lowered are indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 5.

It will be noted that in both of the forms of the invention to which reference has heretofore been made, the heating unit is support ed in relatively fixed position with respect to the casing in which it is housed but in the form of the invention now to be described, the heating unit is so arranged as to be relatively movable with respect to the parts from which it derives its support, while the plate as in the case of the said other forms is relatively movable with respect to the unit.

Thus, in the form of the invention shown inFigs. 6 to 9 inclusive, the heating unit, as in the case of the form shown in Fig. 5, comprises a parabolic reflector 60 having a heating element 61 disposed substantially at its center and to which current is supplied through the medium of a cord or wire W:

The reflector 60 is provided with a marginal flange 62 which is riveted or otherwise suitably secured at diametrically opposite points to a pair of laterally spaced parallel bars 63 and 64: which are hinged at their upper ends on a horizontally and transversely extending rod 65 so that the bars can swing in a vertical plane. The bars are also connected at their lower ends to a rod 66 about whichthe ends of the bars are bent, and the endszof the rod in turn are bent upwardly and then outwardly to extend through holes in the U-shaped member 38. Under normal conditions the heating unitmay be housed in a sheet metal box-like casing 70 Which is closed except at thefront" casing and spaced from its back Wall so as to P ovide air space'ibetween the heater and which it generates directly against the un der surface of the plate so as to heat the same. Equally, when the plate is swung downward to-normal or substantially vertical -thatival l to insure against the latter becoming overheated. Thecasing also is provided I v with'upwardly projecting cars 74: to which the plate is suitably hinged on pivots 7 Itwill thus be apparent that as the plate is swung up from lowered to raised position,

the he-ating'unit will likewise be moved up though to a somewhat lesser extent so that when the plate is fully raised the heating unit will occupy an angular position with respect thereto aSlShOWn in Fig. 6 and in which it is efiective to direct the heat rays position the heating unit will likewise move downward until it is substantially housed in; the casing 70 and thus in a position to direct its heat rays againstthe center of the plate,

' the major portion of which is'closely adjacent the front of the Lmit and in position to receive the projected rays. Under these conditionsthe heating-effect on the room exerted by the heater is. produced both by direct radiatio'n from the plate and also. by heated particulars if desired and various forms of heating unitseither electric or gas may be -:employed either with or Without means for controlling or regulating the heating effect which-they are capable of exerting Without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

-Having thus described my invention, I claim and desire to protect by Letters Patent of the United States:

1 of heat to occupy a horizontal positionabove I the source of heat or a vertical position in r front of the source of heat.

' .1. In a heater, the combination of a source of heat, means for securing said source of neat to a wall, a plate, means for supporting the plate in movable relation to the source 2. In aheater, the combination of a source of heat, means forsupporting said source of heatfrom a wall, a plate, means for supporting the plate in movable relation to the sourceof heat and operable topermit the "plate to be swung from horizontal position above the source of heat to vertical position from a vertical wall, a source'of'heat supported from sald structure, a plate also supported frornsaid structure and movable relatively to said source of heat to occupy a horir zontal position above said source or a vertical position in front of said'source I 4. In a heater, the combination of a sup porting structure adapted to be secured to a vertical wall, a source of heat supported from said structure, a plate supported from said structure and movable about ahorizontal axis adjacent one of its edges from a vertical position in front of said source of heat to a horizontal position above said source, and means for releasably supporting the plate in said last mentioned position.

5. In a heater, the combination of a supporting structure adapted to be secured to a vertical wall, a source of heat deriving support from said structure, a flanged plate hingedly supported from the structure and movable about a horizontal axis adjacent one of its edges and relatively to said source of heat from a vertical position in front of said source of a horizontalposition above said source, and means for releasably supsitlon. V

6. In a heater, the combination of a supporting structure adapted to be secured to a vertical wall, a source of heat deriving support fromwsaid structure, a flanged plate hingedly supported from the'structure and movable about a horizontal axis adjacent one of its edges and relatively to said source ofheat from a vertical position in front of said source to a horizontal position above said source,- and means for releasably supporting the plate in said last mentioned position, the

flange of said plate being operative to substantially enclose the source of heat when the plate is in vertical position and having a series of apertures in that portion of the flange which is uppermost when the plate is in said position.

In witness whereof, I-have hereunto set my hand this llthday of April,o1928. v

' JOHN S. FORBES.

- in front of the, source of heat whereby the I plate-is directly heated from said source;

. wh n; in either of said POS l V lnaheater, the combination of a sup- 65, porting structureadapted toreceive support porting the plate in said lastmentioned po- 1 

